Fire forming

[Mark527vARMINT]

Hi i have just formed a batch of RWS .22 Hornet (New cases) down to .17 Hornet , BIG lesson learned glad i bought the Bullberry 20/17 die as i tried to do them without it and crushed a few (10) cases .
Any way i have now trimmed all 90 cases to 1.355 and im wondering where to go with the powder charge ?

In my Hornady cases my 20grn load is 12.4grn and 11.9grn for the 25grn vmax of LovexDO63 (AA1680) which i get 3680fps from 24" barrel.

To fireform these cases where should i be.

Thank you .

[georgeld]

Try one at the low charge and see what it does.
Protect your face, but, should be fine. Brass isn't
that sensitive. IF it works in one brand, just start
with the low charge and compare.

[Tilleyman]

RWS Hornet cases are very high quality but T-O-U-G-H, you will need to neck anneal them after reforming before fireforming or you will split those expensive cases at the shoulder

[Mark527vARMINT]

Sorry i missed that bit off yes they will be annealed. Would the cream of wheat method work with these cases ?

[L461]

Just load them and shoot things.
Fire forming cases is not a black art.
Every case ever fired in a rifle chamber for the first time is being fire formed to that chamber.

[L.Sherm]

The cream of wheat method will work. When I fireform i drop my charge to whatever gets the job done and doesn't create to much pressure and load and shoot. Seat the bullets into the lands a bit, you will be surprised how well fireforming loads can be accurate sometimes.

[Bayou City Boy]

Originally Posted by L461

Just load them and shoot things.
Fire forming cases is not a black art.
Every case ever fired in a rifle chamber for the first time is being fire formed to that chamber.

Good advice........

Nothing is worse than using a light load to fire form that only forms the case part way. A total waste of time, IMO.

Use a safe but stiff load with bullets and go from there. Do it right the first time.

-BCB

[Mark527vARMINT]

So basically load up my normal 20grn or 25grn load and shoot things with it ?
that will work for me

[L Cazador]

Originally Posted by Mark527vARMINT

So basically load up my normal 20grn or 25grn load and shoot things with it ?
that will work for me

Try to seat bullets as close to the lands as possible. This will help hold the case against the bolt face for proper fire form. With this said you should drop your load down about 10%. It will take two fire forms to get a sharp form on the shoulder. A strong load can and will damage your brass and split at the shoulder. So it's best to take it slow and anneal after forming your brass. I've done this with hundreds of rounds on my Ackley 17 Hornet as well as made 17 HH from 22 Hornet RWS

[Mark527vARMINT]

Brilliant replys thank you all very much.